Incubator



(No Model.)

J. W. HANNUM.

I INGUBATOR. No. 264,284. Patented Sept. 12, 1882.

\ UNITED STATES PATENT Garden.

JAMES \V. HANNUM, OF LUDLOW, MASSACHUSETTS.

lNCU BATO R.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 264,284, datedSeptember 12, 1882.

Application filed February .26, 1881. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, JAMES W. HANNUM, a citizen of the United States,residing at Ludlow, in the county of Hampden and State of Massachusetts,have invented new and useful Improvements in Incubators, of which'thefollowing is a specification.

My invention relates to the details of construction of heat-regulatingdevices connected with a heating-boiler, the object being to cause theheat to be regulated directly by the variations of heat in thewater-boiler and in the circulating-pipes.

In the drawings forming part of this specification, Figure 1 illustratesan incubator having its top removed, showing the pipes therein, andhaving attached to said pipes a boiler provided with my improvedheat-governing devices. Fig. 2 is a sectional view of an elasticdiaphragm and the end of a pipe leading from the boiler of theincubator. Fig. 3 is a perspective view of the parts shown in Fig. 2.Fig. 4 is a View of the burner of lamp h det'ached therefrom and havingits side broken away to show the ordinary mechanism therein for raisingand lowering the lamp-wick.

In the drawings, A is the incubator-box, inclosing a suitableheating-chamber, s.

B is an egg-drawer, adapted to slide into and be inclosed in saidchamber.

0 are heating-pipes, a carrying the water from the boiler and creturning it to the boiler.

D is the boiler.

eis a pipe extending downward from the boiler D, provided with astopcock, e, and having its lower end covered with an elastic diaphragm,t'. Attached to said diaphragm centrally is a connecting-rod, 0, whichis attached to the arm of the wick-raising shaft o, the latter havingits end bent at right angles to form an elbow-lever. Said shaft 12 isprovided with the usual toothed wheels to operate against the wick ofthe lamp.

The dotted lines in Fig. 1, around the top of the incubator-chamber,represent the position of the cover to said chamber when in placethereon.

The heating-pipes 0 'are arranged in the chamber 8, eitherin suchposition that the eggdrawer will lie under or over them, as may bepreferred.

The operation of my improved incubator is as follows: The stop-cock uponthe end of the pipe standing vertically on the boiler D is opened, andby any convenient means the boiler and the pipes c are filled withwater, as well as pipe 0, which runs downward from said boiler, and hasits lower end covered by the elastic diaphragm 27. Said stop-cock isclosed after the lamp It has been lighted and the water in the boilerhas become somewhat warmed, and as the heat increases the water beginsto circulat-ein the usual inaunerthrough pipes c, flowing from theboiler through pipe 0, and thence following the lines of said pipes tothe center of the coil and back and out from said chamber through pipe 0into the lower part of the boiler.

The arrangement of the diaphragm *5 upon the lower end of pipe 0 is suchthat when the water in boiler D is cold said diaphragm will extendacross the lower end of pipe 0 in a straight line, or nearly so; butwhen the water in said boiler becomes heated to a certain degree saiddiaphragm will, by the expansion of the water by heat, assume a convexform, moving the rod 0 downward, carrying with it the arm onthewick-raising shaft 1;, and operating to turn down the wick of the lampand decrease the heat which it imparts to the boiler and the watertherein, and when the heat in the boiler is decreased to a certainextent said diaphragm c'will move in an opposite direction, causing anopposite action in shaft '2), and raise the wick of the lamp to reheatthe Water. connecting-rod 0 to the lever 11, to produce the requisiteraising and lowering of the wick of the lamp, the desired heat, with butlittle variation, can be maintained in bo'rler D and incirculating-pipes c.

The devices herein shown for regulating the heat, and which are appliedto the boiler-that is, the expanding and retracting elastic diaphragmt'provide new and simple means for regulating the heat within theincubator-chamber, and apply the heat-governing devices directly to theheating medium, so that their action by the variations in the heat ofthe water is more direct and positive than they would be when operated,as is usually the case, by variations of the temperature of the airwithin the chamber, and in this way the desired uniform Thus by a properadjustment of the' temperature within the incubator-chamber can beeasily secured.

The stop-cock e is inserted in pipe 6 to provide means for shutting offthe water when it 5 becomes necessary to remove, replace, or repair thediaphragm i.

To provide means for securing the rod to diaphragm 2', withoutperforating said dia phragm and causing leaks therein, the device IOshown in Fig. 2 is preferably employed,which consists in folding thecentral portion of the diaphragm around the edges of a disk, at, andinclosing said disk and a portion of the diaphragm, passing arounditwithin the bent edges I5 of a disk or plate 0, attached to the upper endof the rod 0. Diaphragm i is secured to the lower end of pipe 0, whichpipe is made slightly of bell-shape, as shown, to increase its area atthat point by wiring said diaphragm 2o thereon, as shown, or by othersuitable means.

It is obvious that either a lamp, as shown, or a jet of gas may beemployed for heating the water in boiler D, and that through suitableconnections with the diaphragm i and rod 0 the stop-cock of such agas-jet will be operated by the expansion and contraction of the waterin said boiler, to increase and decrease the volume of said gas-jet.Also, such lamps as are constructed with an extinguishing-tube arrangedto slide vertically over the lamp-wick, to vary the size of the flame,may be used instead of those made with the ordinary rolling toothedwick-raiser. When the former are used the lever '11 may be madestraight, or nearly so, one end being connected to said sliding tube,its opposite end to the rod 0, and a proper fulcrum-bearing be providednear the burner on the lamp, to which said lever may be attached at apoint between its ends, so that said wick-tube would he slid up and downon the wick by the action of the diaphragm, and thereby the flame beincreased and diminished, as above described.

What I claim as my invention is 1. In an incubator, the combination ofthe boiler D, the coil of Water-pipes 0, and the pipe 6, entirely filledwith water, the diaphragm 2', rod 0, connected to said diaphragm, lamph, and the wick-raising shaft 1;, substantially as set forth.

2. In combination, the diaphragm i, disk at, and the rod 0, having theplate 0 on its upper end, substantially as and for the purpose setforth.

JAMES \V. HANNUM. YVitnesses H. A. GHAPIN, J. D. GARFIELD.

